Pushups effective?

Hey guys im real short of money at the moment so ive been doing calisthenics every day mainly pushups. Im pretty fat so i can only manage 20 pushups in a row but im adding 1 more rep every two days. Will this make me gain muscle mass? Or should i save up for a gym membership?

You will not gain any real muscle by doing pushups. You will burn fat and tone up though. Start lifting weights. Buy your own though. It's wildly cheaper than a gym membership.

You will not gain any real muscle by doing pushups. You will burn fat and tone up though. Start lifting weights.

Pirate700

Get some cardio in too.Run, walk, bike...what ever.

Push ups and pull ups are probably the 2 best exercises to do to build up some strength and stamina in your upper body. O and also try to vary the push ups, wide grip, diamonds etc.. you can even use a chair for some leverage to work out your top portion more.

You will not gain any real muscle by doing pushups. You will burn fat and tone up though. Start lifting weights. Buy your own though. It's wildly cheaper than a gym membership.

Pirate700

The fastest way to get rid of fat is to replace it with muscle. You will see the fastest results from doing a lot of weightlifting.

Here is how I do my weightlifting workouts.

Day 1 Muscle Groups: Biceps, Back, and Forearms. I am going to do 2 or 3 weightlifting exercises for each of these three muscle groups. I do repetitions of 25, but if you want you can go for reps of 10/12. Make sure you also do 3 sets of every exercise. You can look online for exercises for these muscle groups. I mostly do free weights, but their are some good cable machines for back, like cable pull downs. I also do cable crunches after everyworkout. You should try and workout your abdominal muscles everyday, look online for pictures showing you how to do weighted crunches and cable crunches, its the fastest way to get a sixpack. I also do my obliques every workout, you can look online for exercises for that. This workout is about an Hour or more

Day 2: I do Chest and Triceps on my second day of weightlifting. Do like 3 chest exercises 2 or 3 tricep exercises. This could be like barbell bench, dumbell bench, and flies. This one is about 40-50 minutes, it all depends on how much rest you take.

Day 3: I then workout my shoulders, I do about 6 exercises and try to hit all the muscles in my shoulders. This will be about an hour or more.

Day 4: Do legs, try and hit all the leg muscles whether it be machines or weighted walking lunges.

General Information: If you are serious about weightlifting make sure to have a protein drink before and after your workout. You won't build muscle without a lot of protein. Also make sure to have protein with every meal. A good company for protein is http://www.championnutrition.com/, you are going to want a Whey protein and a egg protein container. You do a full scoop of Whey before the workout and 50-50 egg/whey for after the workout. I do repetitions of 25 and sets of 3 for all my exercises. I can't lift reps of 10 yet because I don't want to stunt my growth considering I am only 17 and I don't want to damage my growth plates. I have built a lot of muscle off of reps of 25. I have never been overweight, but if you stick to this routine or something similar you will lose the weight in no time.

I hope you take my advice. :D

Almost forgot to add, if you choose reps of 25 it will be difficult or near impossible at first, until your muscles have more endurance. Reps of 25 will probably burn more fat and shred you up more, give you more endurance, while low reps will give more mass, which might get rid of fat quicker. Its up to you though, reps of 20 are also a option.

Also,

Make sure to keep in mind that weightlifting is mostly mental, when you go to workout, enter the weight room with a positive attitude and picture yourself putting on muscle. If you go in the gym "mopey" and not expecting results, that's exactly what you will get. Do your best to do good form, and remember to picture yourself building muscle when you are doing the exercises.

If you want cardio, my favorites are kick-boxing and jump roping, but you can throw in like running or something on your 5th day of the week. Give yourself at least one or two days of rest every week as well.

If you want cardio, my favorites are kick-boxing and jump roping,

VisigothSaxon

Jump roping is an absolutely fantastic way to do cardio. However, make sure you have shoes with really good padding. If your heavy your knees and ankles well be banged up, so just be careful.

Pushups are very effective at making yo fit, but they don't really put on any showy muscles.

Also make sure to drink water when you are weightlifting or doing cardio, or working out in general. It makes me cringe when I see people working out, without a water bottle, you need to be hydrated. If you want something to help you regain electrolytes during a workout as well, there is a powder you can put in your water called Emergen-C, I have one packet in my water every workout because it keeps me going and hydrated.

http://www.emergenc.com/

Here is there main site, make sure to not put the packet in too much water or it will taste bad, the emergen-c tastes better if it is in a smaller ammount of water. You also don't have to do my full workout plan all at once, just work your way up to it.

If you want cardio, my favorites are kick-boxing and jump roping, but you can throw in like running or something on your 5th day of the week. Give yourself at least one or two days of rest every week as well.

VisigothSaxon

Could also try cycling and rowing for cardio.

pushups are like one of the best excercises you can do. my advice is to buy weights, and use this website for reference, i can't recommend it enough, www.scoobyworkshop.com

Also make sure to drink water when you are weightlifting or doing cardio, or working out in general. It makes me cringe when I see people working out, without a water bottle, you need to be hydrated. If you want something to help you regain electrolytes during a workout as well, there is a powder you can put in your water called Emergen-C, I have one packet in my water every workout because it keeps me going and hydrated.

http://www.emergenc.com/

Here is there main site, make sure to not put the packet in too much water or it will taste bad, the emergen-c tastes better if it is in a smaller ammount of water. You also don't have to do my full workout plan all at once, just work your way up to it.

VisigothSaxon

sounds like a BS scam. all you need is water. natural foods are the best, steroids, protein shakes etc are pretty much all bad i believe.

sounds like a BS scam. all you need is water. natural foods are the best, steroids, protein shakes etc are pretty much all bad i believe.

jpph

How are protein shakes bad? I use to workout without taking shakes. After I started taking shakes I noticed a huge difference in muscle gain in just 2 months and my routine wasn't much different. Some time you just don't have time to make a meal and shakes can help make up for that.

[QUOTE="VisigothSaxon"]

Also make sure to drink water when you are weightlifting or doing cardio, or working out in general. It makes me cringe when I see people working out, without a water bottle, you need to be hydrated. If you want something to help you regain electrolytes during a workout as well, there is a powder you can put in your water called Emergen-C, I have one packet in my water every workout because it keeps me going and hydrated.

http://www.emergenc.com/

Here is there main site, make sure to not put the packet in too much water or it will taste bad, the emergen-c tastes better if it is in a smaller ammount of water. You also don't have to do my full workout plan all at once, just work your way up to it.

jpph

sounds like a BS scam. all you need is water. natural foods are the best, steroids, protein shakes etc are pretty much all bad i believe.

That like saying steak is bad or any other source of protein.

Start lifting weights. Buy your own though. It's wildly cheaper than a gym membership.

Pirate700

sounds like a BS scam. all you need is water. natural foods are the best, steroids, protein shakes etc are pretty much all bad i believe.

jpph

Wow, you must not know a lot about putting on muscle, or have much muscle yourself. Emergen-C is great and doesn't have all that fake sugar and bad artificial stuff. You won't build anything without protein drinks and eating protein in your meals. You also need veggies and carbs. Who said anything about Steriods, I personally would never do steriods, its not worth the side-effects, and you don't need it to get big and ripped.

When I had a bad Bench Plateau, pushups really helped me break it. Pushups will help you gain muscle but lifting weights is better.

There's a reason why it's the tried-and-true workout of the military. If you're fat, as you stated, I'd be more concerned with doing cardio, lots of running to burn off that fat, along with pushups, pullups, and situps. The important ting about pushups and situps is not only the fact that they're effective exercises, they don't require any special equipment to perform.ElZilcho90

You are forgetting that a lot of the people in the military especially any of the special forces do a lot of weightlifting. Weightlifting gives endurance, burns fat by replacing it with muscle, all the fat just feeds the muscles growth. Cardio won't be abel to beat the results of weightlifting.

[QUOTE="Pirate700"]

Start lifting weights. Buy your own though. It's wildly cheaper than a gym membership.

superclocked

I disagree. First, I don't think you can get a good home gym with $1000. Second, I paid $300 for a 2 year membership :|

Ya you might just want to get one of those Cosco memberships to 24 hour fitness that are I believe 300 bucks like the guy above me said.

[QUOTE="jpph"]

[QUOTE="VisigothSaxon"]

Also make sure to drink water when you are weightlifting or doing cardio, or working out in general. It makes me cringe when I see people working out, without a water bottle, you need to be hydrated. If you want something to help you regain electrolytes during a workout as well, there is a powder you can put in your water called Emergen-C, I have one packet in my water every workout because it keeps me going and hydrated.

http://www.emergenc.com/

Here is there main site, make sure to not put the packet in too much water or it will taste bad, the emergen-c tastes better if it is in a smaller ammount of water. You also don't have to do my full workout plan all at once, just work your way up to it.

hedden93

sounds like a BS scam. all you need is water. natural foods are the best, steroids, protein shakes etc are pretty much all bad i believe.

That like saying steak is bad or any other source of protein.

it's not really like saying that. by bad i mean just unecessary, there are healthier ways of getting protein. they can cause liver problems, google it. the fact is that all anyone needs to look great is just a smart diet and excercise. nearly all products out there are BS, such as the electrolyte thing, sure..........

Well you have never tried it so you wouldn't know. None of the proteins or powders I use are unhealthy. Whey protein boosts the immune system, egg protein strengthens ligaments, both of these have countless health benefits. As far as the Emergen-C goes, it does restore your electrolytes and gives you some vitamins. You are basically saying protein and vitamins and minerals are unhealthy lol. Get your facts straight.

why are you guys suggesting protein shakes? He can only do 20 pushups in a row....OP, before you start drinking shakes, you really should start taking jogs, getting in shape first, buying some weights or a gym membership. Protein shakes are for weight lifters, there's no need for that. Right now, I'd just stick to water if I were you.mohfrontline

The reason is, weightlifting will give him the best results if he can start doing it. He will also be able to do more with weightlifing than push-ups because he has to push the extra weight up. So weightlifting is a logical choice, and protein and weightlifting go hand and hand.

[QUOTE="jpph"]

sounds like a BS scam. all you need is water. natural foods are the best, steroids, protein shakes etc are pretty much all bad i believe.

VisigothSaxon

Wow, you must not know a lot about putting on muscle, or have much muscle yourself. Emergen-C is great and doesn't have all that fake sugar and bad artificial stuff. You won't build anything without protein drinks and eating protein in your meals. You also need veggies and carbs. Who said anything about Steriods, I personally would never do steriods, its not worth the side-effects, and you don't need it to get big and ripped.

most of those products are. i know what you need to gain muscle, and buying into those products is not necessary. that said, i apologise, i thought emergen c was a muscle activator nonsense thing, it's just like berocca or something. that said, it simply is not necesary to bulk.

[QUOTE="mohfrontline"]why are you guys suggesting protein shakes? He can only do 20 pushups in a row....OP, before you start drinking shakes, you really should start taking jogs, getting in shape first, buying some weights or a gym membership. Protein shakes are for weight lifters, there's no need for that. Right now, I'd just stick to water if I were you.VisigothSaxon

The reason is, weightlifting will give him the best results if he can start doing it. He will also be able to do more with weightlifing than push-ups because he has to push the extra weight up. So weightlifting is a logical choice, and protein and weightlifting go hand and hand.

Of course pushups are better than not doing them at all, I did them some when I started to feel unfit.

most of those products are. i know what you need to gain muscle, and buying into those products is not necessary. that said, i apologise, i thought emergen c was a muscle activator nonsense thing, it's just like berocca or something. that said, it simply is not necesary to bulk.

jpph

Yes I understand where you are coming from. Poeple shouldnt fall prey to product advertisement. No it isn't necessary if you are able to have time to have a balance diet and eat properly. But still shakes are pretty effective to gain muscle easier. Also like someone stated earlier TC is nowhere near to the point where he should start taking shakes. Maybe just focus on salads and lean meat for the time being.

you won't gain muscle mass from doing pushups unless you drastically increase the amount you do. mike tyson's training regime during his prime consisted of pushups, sit ups, and dips. it is very possible to get large by doing only the above mentioned workouts, but it would be very grueling, and we're not mike tyson. however, doing pushups is a great way to get toned, no doubt about that!

[QUOTE="jpph"]

sounds like a BS scam. all you need is water. natural foods are the best, steroids, protein shakes etc are pretty much all bad i believe.

VisigothSaxon

Wow, you must not know a lot about putting on muscle, or have much muscle yourself. Emergen-C is great and doesn't have all that fake sugar and bad artificial stuff. You won't build anything without protein drinks and eating protein in your meals. You also need veggies and carbs. Who said anything about Steriods, I personally would never do steriods, its not worth the side-effects, and you don't need it to get big and ripped.

most of those products are. i know what you need to gain muscle, and buying into those products is not necessary. that said, i apologise, i thought emergen c was a muscle activator nonsense thing, it's just like berocca or something. that said, it simply is not necesary to bulk.

jpph

I realise that, which is why I gave a link to champoinnutrition has really good quality protein that doesn't have soy in it. I almost forgot to add, if you want to build muscle you must avoid soy protein at all costs. Soy protein builds estrogen and if you have it enough you will get man boobs, so be careful. I didn't say emergen-c was nessacary for bulk, it just keeps you hydrated and helps you get through a workout, it also boosts your immune system. Emergen-C is great for any workout or sport, helps the water go through and be used as well, the more you sweat the more electrolytes you lose, the Emergen-C is really good at putting them back. It is like a healthy version of gatorade for example or any of those other sugary sports drinks, except its natural and you just add it to your water.

[QUOTE="VisigothSaxon"]

[QUOTE="jpph"]

sounds like a BS scam. all you need is water. natural foods are the best, steroids, protein shakes etc are pretty much all bad i believe.

positivebalance

Wow, you must not know a lot about putting on muscle, or have much muscle yourself. Emergen-C is great and doesn't have all that fake sugar and bad artificial stuff. You won't build anything without protein drinks and eating protein in your meals. You also need veggies and carbs. Who said anything about Steriods, I personally would never do steriods, its not worth the side-effects, and you don't need it to get big and ripped.

I really don't mean to sound rude, but where on earth are you guys getting your information from?:o

The fastest way to get rid of fat is to replace it with muscle. You will see the fastest results from doing a lot of weightlifting.

Here is how I do my weightlifting workouts.

Day 1 Muscle Groups: Biceps, Back, and Forearms. I am going to do 2 or 3 weightlifting exercises for each of these three muscle groups. I do repetitions of 25, but if you want you can go for reps of 10/12. Make sure you also do 3 sets of every exercise. You can look online for exercises for these muscle groups. I mostly do free weights, but their are some good cable machines for back, like cable pull downs. I also do cable crunches after everyworkout. You should try and workout your abdominal muscles everyday, look online for pictures showing you how to do weighted crunches and cable crunches, its the fastest way to get a sixpack. I also do my obliques every workout, you can look online for exercises for that. This workout is about an Hour or more

Day 2: I do Chest and Triceps on my second day of weightlifting. Do like 3 chest exercises 2 or 3 tricep exercises. This could be like barbell bench, dumbell bench, and flies. This one is about 40-50 minutes, it all depends on how much rest you take.

Day 3: I then workout my shoulders, I do about 6 exercises and try to hit all the muscles in my shoulders. This will be about an hour or more.

Day 4: Do legs, try and hit all the leg muscles whether it be machines or weighted walking lunges.

General Information: If you are serious about weightlifting make sure to have a protein drink before and after your workout. You won't build muscle without a lot of protein. Also make sure to have protein with every meal. A good company for protein is http://www.championnutrition.com/, you are going to want a Whey protein and a egg protein container. You do a full scoop of Whey before the workout and 50-50 egg/whey for after the workout. I do repetitions of 25 and sets of 3 for all my exercises. I can't lift reps of 10 yet because I don't want to stunt my growth considering I am only 17 and I don't want to damage my growth plates. I have built a lot of muscle off of reps of 25. I have never been overweight, but if you stick to this routine or something similar you will lose the weight in no time.

I hope you take my advice. :D

Almost forgot to add, if you choose reps of 25 it will be difficult or near impossible at first, until your muscles have more endurance. Reps of 25 will probably burn more fat and shred you up more, give you more endurance, while low reps will give more mass, which might get rid of fat quicker. Its up to you though, reps of 20 are also a option.

Also,

Make sure to keep in mind that weightlifting is mostly mental, when you go to workout, enter the weight room with a positive attitude and picture yourself putting on muscle. If you go in the gym "mopey" and not expecting results, that's exactly what you will get. Do your best to do good form, and remember to picture yourself building muscle when you are doing the exercises.

VisigothSaxon

do whatb this guy says and youll be good

[QUOTE="positivebalance"]

[QUOTE="VisigothSaxon"]

Wow, you must not know a lot about putting on muscle, or have much muscle yourself. Emergen-C is great and doesn't have all that fake sugar and bad artificial stuff. You won't build anything without protein drinks and eating protein in your meals. You also need veggies and carbs. Who said anything about Steriods, I personally would never do steriods, its not worth the side-effects, and you don't need it to get big and ripped.

Lethargika

I really don't mean to sound rude, but where on earth are you guys getting your information from?:o

actually, you don't ned protein shakes to build muscle. the body only accepts a certain amount of protein, the rest is turned to waste or even poison in your bones. furthermore, creatine damages the liver, and i don't recommend that at all. also, mike tyson got his physique by following a strict diet of steak, chicken, juice, and lucky charms. protein shakes are meal replacements, nothing more. it really comes down to preference. if you prefer drinking nasty, overpriced beverages rather then eating a delicious, healthy, wholesome meal, then go for it.

positivebalance

Actually, protein should never replace a meal, EVER! You need a excess of protein actually to build muscle. Okay, for a regular day when you aren't working out you need protein equal to half your body weight. When you are working out and trying to build muscle you need amore than half, which is where the protein drinks come in. Yes I know that over protein can make you acidic and so on, but I am not suggesting too much protein. I eat extremely healthy, I don't even eat wheat or glutten for example. Just like nuts, meat proteins, yogurt, starches, veggies, fruits, corn, rice, and so on.

I thought this thread was about the effectiveness of push-up bra's. I'm, so, disappointed.-eddy-

I was going to post some pic to "lift" your spirits. But I already been modded enough for the week.

do what this guy says and youll be good

batman_is_aweso

Thank you, it took my older brother and I a long time to come up with a routine that worked as well as that, finally someone can see that I know what I am talking about when it comes to muscle and weightlifting.

[QUOTE="VisigothSaxon"]

[QUOTE="jpph"]

sounds like a BS scam. all you need is water. natural foods are the best, steroids, protein shakes etc are pretty much all bad i believe.

positivebalance

Wow, you must not know a lot about putting on muscle, or have much muscle yourself. Emergen-C is great and doesn't have all that fake sugar and bad artificial stuff. You won't build anything without protein drinks and eating protein in your meals. You also need veggies and carbs. Who said anything about Steriods, I personally would never do steriods, its not worth the side-effects, and you don't need it to get big and ripped.

Lol at Lucky Charms :lol:

Should I make a weightlifting guide topic? To give people that are interested a workout plant to start with? What do you guys think?

[QUOTE="positivebalance"]

actually, you don't ned protein shakes to build muscle. the body only accepts a certain amount of protein, the rest is turned to waste or even poison in your bones. furthermore, creatine damages the liver, and i don't recommend that at all. also, mike tyson got his physique by following a strict diet of steak, chicken, juice, and lucky charms. protein shakes are meal replacements, nothing more. it really comes down to preference. if you prefer drinking nasty, overpriced beverages rather then eating a delicious, healthy, wholesome meal, then go for it.

VisigothSaxon

Actually, protein should never replace a meal, EVER! You need a excess of protein actually to build muscle. Okay, for a regular day when you aren't working out you need protein equal to half your body weight. When you are working out and trying to build muscle you need amore than half, which is where the protein drinks come in. Yes I know that over protein can make you acidic and so on, but I am not suggesting too much protein. I eat extremely healthy, I don't even eat wheat or glutten for example. Just like nuts, meat proteins, yogurt, starches, veggies, fruits, corn, rice, and so on.

Should I make a weightlifting guide topic? To give people that are interested a workout plant to start with? What do you guys think?

VisigothSaxon

Sure if you want to spend the time and give proper info.